hypotheticalhurricanesfandomcom-20200216-history
Hurricane Lisa (Rockafirefan)
Hurricane Lisa 'was the costliest hurricane in Cuban history. The thirteenth named storm, seventh hurricane, and fourth major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane, Lisa achieved Category 5 status in early October of 2004. Lisa originated from a tropical wave off the coast of the Cabo Verde Islands. In total, Lisa caused $51.3 billion dollars in damage, making it the costliest hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season, and the third-costliest of all time. Lisa is also the deadliest hurricane of the 2000's, killing 1,235 people from Cuba, Florida, and Jamaica. 'Meteorological History ''' On October 3, 2004, the National Hurricane Center began tracking a tropical wave moving to the south of the Cabo Verde Islands. The storm accelerated westward as it slowly strengthened, and the NHC designated the now more organized system as Tropical Storm Lisa. The storm slightly weakened due to high wind shear to the south of Hispaniola, before attaining hurricane status on October 7. Hurricane Lisa began to move northeastward towards Jamaica, where landfall was predicted as a weak Category 2 hurricane. Unexpectedly, Lisa strengthened into a major hurricane, the 4th of the season, and made landfall on the island of Jamaica, with winds of up to 115 MPH. Low damage was reported in Jamaica, due to the fact that the storm sped up after landfall, and slightly weakened while inland to a Category 2 hurricane. On October 8, Lisa began a rapid strengthening process, attaining Category 5 status by 11:00 PM EDT on October 8. The strengthening process was one of the fastest in recorded history, which baffled many meteorologists and workers at the National Hurricane Center. On October 9, Hurricane Lisa made landfall on Cuba, with maximum sustained winds of up to 165 mph, and a minimum barometric pressure of 905 mbar, making it the most intense landfalling hurricane in the Atlantic basin. After the landfall in Cuba, Lisa exited the island on October 10, and headed towards Florida as a Category 4 major hurricane. Lisa weakened late on October 10 over Grand Bahama Island to a high-end Category 2 hurricane. On October 13, Hurricane Lisa made landfall near Cape Canaveral, Florida, with maximum sustained winds of up to 110 mph, a Category 2 hurricane. Lisa weakened to a Tropical Depression by the early morning of October 15, before becoming extratropical the same day. Lisa continued to disorganize and sprawl across the mid-western United States. Finally, on October 17, Extratropical Cyclone Lisa dissipated over the Great Lakes. '''Preparations Cuba The government of Cuba ordered an evacuation of the southern coast of the country on October 7, as landfall was expected in the next 48 hours. The evacuees had almost no time to leave, so most stayed, helping the death toll rise eventually. The government in Havana was evacuated on October 8, as well as other high-ranking officials, before the storm. This act was controversial and described as unethical after the storm, due to the loss of life, and how the government were some of the only ones to leave the island. United States On October 10, the governor of Florida ordered a state of emergency, as well as the governor of Georgia. Alabama soon followed. Mandatory evacuations from Port St. Lucie to Jacksonville were ordered in Florida, while most Georgia residents attempted to evacuate inland incase the storm changed direction northward. Impacts Aftermath In April of 2005, the World Meteorological Center retired the name Lisa from the rotation hurricane naming lists. Lisa was replaced with ''Lucy ''for the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season. Category:Category 5 hurricanes Category:Costly storms Category:Deadly storms Category:Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes